Page 128 of Lunar Desires
“I think you should leave,” Peter tried. “You’ve come here to blindside us. That’s not fair.”
It wasn’t fair? Really? Wow. What a load of crap.
Mum shut him down. “No. He wants answers, we’ll give him answers. Peter showed up at exactly the right moment when I confronted your dad about his latest whore.”
“The knock on the door,” Isaac whispered, referring to that vision in the blue.
Mum didn’t seem to hear him. “Peter’s a shadow witch. Reformed for the most part.”
Pain flared behind my eyes, my head struggling to take in anymore of this. “But he wears a witch bangle. Shadow witches don’t wear bangles.”
Actually, they did. Fake ones if they were in the streets. Aura lenses only pick up on the blue energy of the witch, not the type.
“Oh my God…”
“You can’t be serious,” Isaac said.
Now came Peter’s turn to hit me with a ton of bricks. “I rejected Kane Kingwood’s teachings but kept a shadow grimoire just in case. When I came over to find your parents arguing, I got into a fight with your dad. Knocked him out. It should’ve ended there.”
“No it shouldn’t,” Mum rebutted.
Peter spoke in his kind voice, regardless of the subject matter. “I saw red, you know? I hated him for hurting your mum again. I’d seen so much of it over the years. After this latest betrayal, I snapped. I arranged for him to be picked up and took him to my coven.”
“You have a coven?” Isaac interjected, fury in his tone.
Peter nodded. “A group of shadow witches on the righteous path. Only, we decided to use two more shadow spells. To help your mum. To stop the scumbag taking you to America.”
“Because I’m your mother!” Mum yelled, slapping at her chest. “Me. I raised you.” Tears tracked down her cheeks. “Don’t forget that, sweetie. I’m…I’m your mum.”
Rage hummed from the tips of my toes to the top of my head. Broiling, about to burst.
“The spell cursed Daniel into a shade,” Peter said. “It’s what he deserved. He’d be caught in an endless loop, recycled for the rest of his days. Suffering. But clearly there’s been a cock up. I’m not sure why he’s appearing to you like this. A clash of his magic and the curse?”
He asked as if I knew the damn reason.
“Must be,” Mum put in.
My stepdad reached a nasty crux detail. “We killed five homeless people for the curse and the other spell to work effectively.”
He didn’t hesitate to explain how the other spell created a lie, a fake story for me, for everyone. A massive lie to even fool Drake’s magic. And he, along with his coven, had pulled it off without a hitch. No comebacks, all done under the radar.
“You have no idea how powerful shadow magic can be,” my stepdad said.
“I’ve seen enough,” I threw back, unsure of my next move.
“Sweetie,” Mum whispered, all gentle now. “He hurt me so much. He wanted to tear us apart. All I ever wanted was the best for you, son.”
Not your son.
Not your son.
Not your son.
I felt lightheaded, as if I’d stood too quickly, fury spilling over the sides of my inner cauldron.
Destroy this place.
Destroy them both.
